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Jeanne Calment
Vital Records and Events 21st February 1875: Jeanne Louise Calment was born in Arles, rue Duroure. Her parents were Nicolas Calment, shipbuilder and Marguerite Gilles, without profession. In 1886 Jeanne is counted with her parents and maid Marguerite Minaud in section L at the new address, Roquette 53. Validators of Madame Calment claimed that she had only one address before marriage (at rue Duroure) but this is wrong. In 1896 Jeanne is counted with her parents, Marguerite Minaud and grandfather Claude Gilles at Roquette 53. Validators of Madame Calment claimed that there was no census in 1896 but this is wrong. 19th January 1898: Jeanne and her double second cousin and husband Fernand Calment had a daughter Yvonne Calment. Early Pictures of Jeanne Calment Picture of Jeanne Calment dressed in traditional Arlesian costume said to be taken at age 22. It appears in the books "L'oubliée de Dieu" by France Cavalié and La passion de vivre by Gabriel Simonoff. Another from around the same time and found in a number of sources. These pictures of Fernand and Jeanne were shown on the TV program "Sept-A-Huit" on TF1 in March 2019. Their origin is unknown but they are assumed to be early in the couples marriage because Fernand has not yet grown a beard. Photos of Jeanne Calment from around 1900. In the following photos Jeanne has an identical hairstyle which suggests that they were taken at the same photographic session. The first one shows Jeanne and Fernand together. This was published in the book by Simonoff where it was claimed to be from 1900. This well known portrait has appeared in several books. Robine and Allard give her age here as 20, but the identical hairstyle to the previous photo means they were taken on the same day. This photo of Jeanne Calment was posted on facebook by Martine Crouanson on 3rd March 2019. Martine is a first cousin twice removed of Fernand Calment on his father's side. Photos of Jeanne Calment from 1910s. Two photos of Jeanne Calment survive from photographer Gustave Ouvière taken together around 1900-1915. Information is provided by the Pierre Fassin donation to the Arles mediatheque. The second photo apparently from the same sitting was used on an ID card in the 1930s. Jeanne at Piano with Fernand This photo with Jeanne playing piano and Fernand listening was shown on Belgian TV in 2019 along with some other photos, coming probably from family album of Gilberte Méry, daughter of Genevieve Calment, relative of Jeanne and Fernand Calment. The description by Madame Calment of the living room and the folding screen allegedely made by Jeanne while she was painting awaiting marriage fits well to this photo. According to her interview to her validators, "My father had changed the living room. The screen was taken away, as it wasn't fashionable any more, so the panels were taken out and shared - I gave them to friends". Possible Photo of Jeanne Calment from 1929 This photo was given to Muriel Blanchecotte-Devilette who worked in the Maison du Lac shortly after the death of Mme Calment by Mr. Marie along with his notes about Calments. It could be a picture of Jeanne Calment with her husband Fernand and their grandson Freddy at about three years old. The age of Freddy would date it to about 1929. There are striking resemblances with other photos. Unfortunately the quality of the picture is poor because it was produced from an original using a photocopier. Sceptics say that the clothing worn dates the picture to around 1900, but this is not reliable. The chairs are folding metal bistro chairs which were patented in 1889. They became popular for use outside bistros and later as garden chairs. Marie wrote that Madame Calment never met Van Gogh. According to him, it was Fernand Calment (Marie calls him "papa Nicolas") who sold canvases to the artist in the family store at rue Jouvenne so probably the famous description of Van Gogh by Madame Calment comes from him. Marie says that Fernand initially was going to marry sister of his grandfather, but changed his mind for reasons which are too long to explain. Switch Photo This is the only known photo showing Jeanne and Yvonne together. Jeanne is on the right. It appeared in the books of Robine and Allard from 1994 and Le Figaro in 1995, having probably originated in a local press report credited to Michèle Gil and all subsequent digital copies appear to have been scanned from the book or journal. It is possible that Allard still holds a photographic copy which may reveal important details. It is not known where or when the picture was taken, but Yvonne's hairstyle matches very closely the one seen in another pictures known to be taken at the Belvedere sanatorium for tuberculosis in Leysin. This picture must have been taken outdoors because the curtains of the window are behind the glass and the sharp shadow is characteristic of direct sunlight rather than interior lighting. The flowers could be Carline Thistle, a stemless alpine plant native to Switzerland and used as a herbal remedy for ling diseases including tuberculosis. It flowers in August and September. The low angle of the light which casts the shadow of Jeanne means that the picture must have been taken in the morning or evening and the window must be facing approximately east or west accordingly. No window that matches has been found in pictures of the Belvedere sanatorium so the location remains a mystery.